Dirt on the dish

As wireless TV services compete
with cable, condo associations
are caught in the middle

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By Lyn Danninger
ldanninger@starbulletin.com

Now that satellite TV provider Dish Network has added most local television stations to its lineup, more Hawaii residents are likely to consider the service.

AYUMI NAKANISHI / ANAKANISHI@STARBULLETIN.COM

The same goes for the other relatively new entrant to the market, wireless cable provider Craig Wireless.

Both require the addition either of a small dish or antenna receiver, which is connected to the home or apartment. While adding a 24-inch dish for satellite service or an antenna ranging in diameter from 6 inches to 36 inches, is generally not an issue for owners of single-family homes, it poses challenges for Hawaii's many condominium and townhome association boards, which generally frown on structural additions to their properties.

However, many boards, which are made up of townhouse or condominium residents, may be unaware that they cannot prohibit the devices under a 1996 Federal Communications Commission ruling.

The ruling, called the Over-The-Air Reception Devices Rule, prohibits any restrictions that impair the installation, maintenance or use of antennas or satellite dishes used to receive TV programming.

Derek Sakaguchi, general manager of Craig Wireless, said his company has generally been reluctant to exercise the FCC ruling and prefers instead to work with condominium boards on a case-by-case basis.

"There are still those who totally refuse so we have to educate them," he said. "We could have got really pushy and say 'here's the ruling' but that's not the right way to approach business."

Craig TV sales manager Bob Toguchi agreed.

"A lot of the problem is that sometimes the boards don't believe that it's an FCC regulation," he said.

But Sakaguchi noted that if boards deal with the issue early on, it's easier to look at alternatives such as setting up one antenna to serve the entire community or installation on a per-building basis rather than ending up with an antenna for every occupant that chooses the service. It can also be cheaper for residents if the entire complex chooses one service, he said.

"We can give them a bulk rate if we get an entire building," he said.

Craig's competitor, the Dish Network, agrees with the low-key approach.

"It's much better to be proactive because otherwise boards may not like the results," said Chuck Schumann, vice president for Microcom, a retailer and regional service provider for the Dish Network. "We try to talk to associations about options such as installing a community dish and also that it enhances the value of a property."

Like Craig, which currently has about 10,000 subscribers, the Dish Network offers bulk rates and works with boards by supplying information and even a list of suggestions about to how to incorporate the parameters for installation within their house rules.

Schuman said there has already been considerable interest in the service since it began at the end of June, especially from the Big Island in the Kona-Kohala resort areas. The company has already completed a central dish installation at the Four Seasons Hualalai Resort, he said.

Joe Poole, a senior vice president for operations at Hawaiiana Management Co., is in charge of property management services for the 240 properties the company manages. Poole said he first ran up against board opposition when GTE Americast began offering services.

"GTE Americast was the first one and initially boards said no," he said.

Craig purchased GTE Americast last year,

PHOTO COURTESY DISH NETWORK Satellite dishes and other means of downloading TV signals may not be blocked by condo boards, under an FCC ruling

Poole noted that association boards are generally uncomfortable with what they perceive to be major change.

"For any kind of changes, our clients are very conservative. They want slow change, if any at all. But sometimes they forget the rights of the owners really come first," he said.

After Hawaiiana's individual property managers became aware of the implications of the FCC ruling, they set about explaining the law to the various association boards that they work with, he said.

Poole notes that boards can still put in reasonable restrictions and procedures in terms of antenna or dish placement. For aesthetic reasons, most don't want antennas or dishes viewable from the street, he said.

Still, Poole said he believes reasonable accommodations can be worked out that respect the home occupant's right to install the devices without unreasonable delay while minimizing unsightliness.

A newly passed state law, Act 137, will make it easier for boards to install such a community dish should they wish. The law eliminates the need to gain a 75 percent homeowner approval. The law was originally intended to address other types of telecom equipment, such as rooftop antennae associated with cellular phones, which can generate additional income for homeowner associations. But it extends to the installation of television satellite and antenna devices in a property's common areas by townhome and condominium community association boards, said Jane Sugimura, president of the Hawaii Council of Associations of Apartment Owners.

Sugimura said she has been working with groups of building resident managers to let them know about the new law.

"There have been some questions so we are trying to educate the members and let them know," she said.